Moral support, part I

Mostly, I've been stranded upstairs once I get up there.

Thankfully, my parents' home doesn't have as many steps as my apartment in York.

One morning, I slide down the steps on my bottom, so I could have breakfast with my mom and Kaiya.

Getting downstairs isn't as bad, unless I bump my foot and send pain shooting through my entire leg.

Climbing back up the steps sucks.

It's like the last 10 minutes of cycling class - you know, the ones where you really, really hope the instructor passes out so you can stop.

You also wonder if you'll be able to move your legs, or if they're just going to fall off when you try to get off the bike.

Going up the steps with the broken ankle is like that - times 100.

Basically, I had to pull all my body weight up, and avoid bumping my ankle, which has a nasty habit of getting in the way.

Kaiya went ahead of me, climbing up the way we taught her.

When she saw I wasn't right behind her, she said, "Auntie 'Chele, you come upstairs?"

From where I'd stopped to rest (I'm sure it was at about the the third step), I looked up at her.

With my sweaty face lying on the step, I told her "I'm coming."

At this point, I was sure I'd never get to the top. I figured I'd just die right there where I was.

However, Kaiya wouldn't give up on me. She said, "I come help, Auntie 'Chele."

The two-year-old came back down the steps, and sat on the step right above my face.

The baby said, 'You can do it," and then started singing to me a song from "The Wonder Pets."

"What's gonna work? Teamwork!," she sang in her cute little baby voice. "What's gonna work? Teamwork!"

It was so sweet, I almost cried.

But Kaiya was there to help, and I didn't want to disappoint her.

Pulling on all my reserves, I used my arms and hoisted my body up the remaining steps.

She was so excited when I got to the top, she said, "You did it! You did it, Auntie!"

Stretched out on the landing, taking another break before crawling to my room, I thought, "She's right, I did."

Sometimes, just moving around seems so scary and overwhelming.

I'm afraid of hurting myself again or making the injury worse.

And often, it just hurts so much I don't want to even try.

But that day, Kaiya helped me realize I could do it, and that she was there to help.

Thank you, baby.